Wakayama Icom Hosts “Hide-and-Seek at the Factory” Event

On March 14, 2026, Wakayama Icom Inc., our manufacturing subsidiary, hosted a “Hide and Seek at the Factory” event, inviting children who use local children’s cafeterias. Through the familiar game of hide and seek, the event allowed participants to handle transceiver equipment, learn basic operation, and understand how transceivers can serve as an important communication tool in emergencies.

Wakayama Icom is a supporting member of the “Arita Area Children’s Cafeteria Support Network,” which was established by the Arita Promotion Bureau of Wakayama Prefecture. In August 2025, Wakayama Icom donated to four children’s cafeteria groups in Aritagawa Town and plans to continue its support.

This “Hide and Seek at the Factory” event was organized in response to a request from one of the cafeterias (Colorful Shokudō). Wakayama Icom plans to continue hosting similar activities upon request and is also considering offering free factory tours.

On the day of the event, 20 children - mainly upper grade elementary school students who use the children’s cafeterias - participated. They took turns playing the roles of “seeker” and “hider” as part of the activity, hiding spots included the factory building and materials warehouse. For safety reasons, a Wakayama Icom staff member supervised each child in the hiding role from a short distance.

Before the game began, Seiichiro Tanaka, President of Wakayama Icom, instructed the children playing the seeker role on how to operate a transceiver. Once they found a hiding child, they used the transceivers to communicate with the other seekers by calling out messages such as “Found one!”

After the game, Mr. Tanaka addressed the children: “In times of disaster, smartphones may become unusable, but transceivers will still work. While smartphones only allow one-to-one communication, transceivers allow one-to-many communication. I hope you will try them and become interested in transceivers.”

The participating children shared their excitement, saying things like, “Finding someone was the most fun part. It was my first time using a transceiver, but it was easier to talk than I expected.”